Oskaloosa Eggs and Issues January 22, 2011 Pt 2
Senator McKinley (left), Rep. Vander Linden (center), Senator Rielly (right) answer questions from the public at the January 22 Eggs and Issues
Will continue the Eggs and Issues from Saturday. Area residents now had the opportunity to ask those who represent them questions.
The first question that was asked from the floor dealt with the collection of sales tax from online presences, and what the state was going to do about this in order to help level the playing field with local retailers and other businesses.
Senator McKinley started off by saying that internet sales are not sales tax exempt. Information from the Iowa Department of Revenue states:
“Consumer’s use tax, on the other hand, is imposed after the sale takes place and only on goods and services that have not yet been subjected to sales tax. In most cases, these are purchases made from an out-of-state supplier not collecting Iowa tax and that are for use in Iowa. Ordinarily, the retailer is responsible for collection of the tax; however, if the retailer is not required by law to collect the tax or the Iowa retailer fails to collect the tax, the purchaser is then responsible for consumer’s use tax. The purchaser must pay the use tax when ownership or control of the purchase is taken.”
“Use tax applies to, but is not limited to, purchases made tax free through mail-order catalogs, television shopping programs, the Internet, toll-free 800 numbers, magazine subscriptions, and untaxed purchases made while in another state and shipped or otherwise brought into Iowa. Anyone, individuals and businesses, who makes these types of purchases is required to pay consumer’s use tax to the Iowa Department of Revenue.” Reference Iowa Department of Revenue
A large attendace with many pressing questions during the recent Eggs and Issues at Smokey Row
Mayor of Oskaloosa Dave Krutzfeldt carried on the conversation about sales tax. He stated that, “If a retailer has a presence in the State of Iowa, then sales tax is collected, if they don’t then it’s not and the burden falls on the person making the purchase to go ahead and write that check. That gets a smile of the Department of Revenue people, this will typically come up with a comment like ‘yeah, that will happen.'”
Krutzfelt continued on with his question to the panel. “We know there’s some effort on the part of the governor’s office to create a rollback for commercial properties. We get a significant amount of money from commercial property tax receipts. (City of Oskaloosa) Has there been any communication to the House as far as creating a rollback for commercial properties? If so, is there a way to hold cities harmless in the event there’s a change?”
Rep. Vander Linden stated that he wasn’t aware of any. He stated that the governor is going to present his budget to the House this coming week.
Representative Guy Vander Linden discusses recent events at the Iowa State House with those at Smokey Row January 21, 2011
Laurie Palmer, an Oskaloosa School Board member, said she wanted to bring up the topic of state wide preschool. “Representative Vander Linden, we know what your position has been on that program. What I’d like to know is what your [inaudible] decision, and what is your vision for preschool in the State of Iowa?”
“Preschool is one of those things that’s in the Taxpayers First Act that’s painful.” “It’s a popular program. “There’s research that says that getting to our young people at preschool age is important.” “Unfortunately, as I said earlier, there are going to have to be painful cuts, and preschool was one of those that was in this bill. It’s gonna be restored in some sense or another. Preschool is not going away.” “Proponents of that particular piece of the bill are saying that we simply can’t afford to send every preschool child to preschool at the states expense. Those who can afford it will be obliged to pay for it, and those who can’t will be covered. Preschool is not gonna go away in this legislature.” Rep. Guy Vander Linden said of the current process around preschool’s future in Iowa.
Senator McKinley stated he agreed with Vander Linden, pointing to the possible use of a sliding scale to help figure the families cost for sending a child to preschool.
Senator Rielly stated, “I guess from my perspective, when it comes to preschool, we’re going back to the way it, pretty much, use to be one of our base priorities.” “It always is, and it still will be, a key priority to Senate Democrats to have a universal preschool system.”
Senator Tom Rielly (left) talks with an Oskaloosa after the recent Eggs and Issues at Smokey Row
John Hesling asked the two senators in attendance a question. “The Revolutionary War was fought to free us from rule of one man. That war was fought to establish constitutions where by we would have rule of law, and our laws would be made by open and fair discussion on the floor of the house and senate for all the public to see and hear, and that decision would be made in a democratic fashion. Yet Iowan’s are now hearing that one man, just one man can prevent discussion and the debate of critical issues important to Iowan’s. How is that possible in this nation, how is that right?”
Senator Rielly responded, “Senator Gronstal is the majority leader, and this has been tradition since the formation of Iowa.” Rielly went on to discuss his views on the Varnum decision. Stating that he had read the decision several times, Rielly went on to say, “I thought it was a well written decision.” “But after I read that decision [Varnum Decision], it put so much clarity to me on the issue. And for me I think it is all about civil rights.” “I don’t understand after reading this decision why a same sex couple shouldn’t be able to enter into the same contract.” “I think it very well could be put up a vote that a majority to a minority to discriminate against them, I’m not sure the votes are even in the State Senate to allow that” “I think it’s more than just one man.”
Iowa Senator McKinley visits with those in attendance at Smokey Row, January 21, 2011
Hesling, responding before Senator McKinley spoke, saying in response to Rielly’s statement to his question, “I just want to say, I didn’t say a word about Varnum. The question is not about Varnum, it’s about the procedural methods in the Senate and if we’re going to talk about civil rights, how about our civil right to have issues of importance discussed on the floor of our House and our Senate without being able to be blocked by one person. I don’t think that’s consistent with our civil rights.”
Senator McKinley then took his turn to attempt to answer the question at hand. “It is trouble when the public is overwhelmingly on one side of the issue, and has expressed that through the legislature, we’ll say, and a duly elected governor and a duly elected legislature saying one thing and then 7 supreme court justices saying another thing. When that occurs, it’s time for the people to weigh in. Now the people were not allowed, because of one man, to have the vote. Which was the right thing to do to allow a constitution amendment to express the will of the people, but the people spoke in another way.” “At the last election we saw what happened to the 3 supreme court justices. Whether you agree with it or disagree with it, the people spoke.” McKinley went on to say, “Had Mike Gronstal allowed a vote on that issue, it would have defused the entire thing and there would never have been an issue raised, but he did not. One man, who was an obstructionist and said ‘I’m going to stand in the way of this’, the people having the say is exactly why those 3 justices were thrown off.”
Jeff VanDerBeek of Mahaska County Pheasants Forever asks Senator McKinley a question at the open forum January 22
Jeff VanDerBeek, Mahaska County Pheasants Forever, asked McKinley, “One of the things I’m hearing is that the Department of Natural Resources is slow issuing permits. When the budget cuts come through, the first thing that you cut is the Department of Natural Resources which turns around and cuts staff, which leads to permits taking a longer time to issue. Every time you guys cut budgets the first thing that goes is natural resources.” “You wanna talk about voters speaking? The Iowa Water and Land Legacy Bill that passed in November had 629,000 votes; the new governor only had 592,000 votes.” “From one fellow pheasant hunter to another fellow pheasant hunter, I ask that you guys fund the Department of Natural Resources. Fully fund REAP. You wanna bring people back to Iowa? Natural Resources is a quality of life issue.”
McKinley said, since he raised the issue earlier, he would answer VanDerBeek’s question. “When I say The Department of Natural Resources, I think we have two divisions. We have the hunting and fishing, which is DNR, and we have the environment protection, which is the permitting.” “When I’m talking, I’m talking about the EPC. I can’t help but say there is no excuse for a 5 year wait or a 7 year wait on a permit. And it isn’t a situation of not enough personnel, it’s a situation of culture, but it’s not the DNR, it’s the EPC.”
After the debate had ended, conversation broke out amongst those in attendance and with the local representatives. Democracy at it’s best.
